Recomended GPS

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I have been using the Geocaching Ap on Iphones for years in the US, Canada, and Europe and been happy with the progression of the AP. Lately the Iphone 5SE GPS has not been as accurate as it was so I am thinking of getting a new GPS. I bought a Montana a few years ago and was unhappy that it wasn't plug and play; in addition to buying maps, it couldn't do all the Iphone could do. I returned that on and stuck with the Iphone.

Now, there may be a more capable GPS that does it all. Not being one to trust the advertising, I thought I would ask users what they thought.

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What do you mean it wasn't plug and play? You mean it doesn't access geocaching.com directly?

There is only one dedicated gps that can do this currently, and that is the Oregon 700 series. It still requires an external connection to the internet, either by Wi-Fi or tethering to your phone's data.

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You won't be happy. Buy a rugged, waterproof Android phone and use it just for caching.

When the iphone caching app I use (Geosphere) stopped being developed, I picked up a rugged waterproof Android "just for caching" - just in case the older iPhone that still supports Geosphere fails or I did not want to risk dropping it into the water (again). I liked some of the offline Android mapping (and caching) apps so much that I rarely take either my iPhone or Garmin Oregon 600 with me if I am hiking or kayaking to a cache.

If you decide to go that route there are a lot of options. Several Chinese manufacturers have moved into the rugged Android market - which perhaps entails a certain amount of risk if support is needed. I use a Blackview BV 6000 - some report that it was plagued with inconsistent hardware production or faulty firmware but I must have gotten lucky,

We are planning some longer trips and I have looked at some rugged androids with even larger batteries and great specs - but there is no particular need for me to switch devices so I have not done anything but look online.

The high end AGM x2 is said to be the best rugged phone out there with a large AMOLED display. What makes it tempting for kayak camping trips is that it comes with a case that floats. The Snopow M10 looks great - it's just been released but one user review stated that the M9 had better accuracy than any other phone or handheld he had used. The less expensive Ulefone Armor 2 advertises that it's antenna is optimized for accurate GPS. The BV 9000 seems more stable than the 6000, but would I want to take that chance or stick with a phone that offered local support?

Of course that still leaves you with needing an app that meets your needs. I would have upgraded the iPhone if I had found an app that I like as well as Geosphere - the app I use on the Android works for me.